Eagles Announce 2018-19 Wrestling Schedule

WASHINGTON, D.C. – A season that starts in October with ranking matches, includes a visit from top-10 opponent Lehigh and ends with nationals in nearby Pittsburgh highlight the 2018-19 American University wrestling schedule.

"The schedule once again presents our student-athletes with the needed conference and national competition to best prepare them for the NCAA Championships," said head coach Teague Moore. "It's important that we have a chance to earn the winning percentage, RPI, and wins over nationally ranked opponents that earn our conference qualifying spots to the NCAA's and ultimately get our wrestlers ready to win at the NCAA Championships.

"Returning NCAA qualifiers Gage Curry, Josh Terao and Michael Sprague lead a squad of hungry, young athletes. Jack Mutchnik, Kizhan Clarke and transfer Tanner Harvey have the ability to compete well with a schedule of this caliber.

"The most notable addition to the schedule presents the opportunity for our wrestlers to compete either at the Reno Tournament of Champions or the Wilkes Open in Late December," said Moore. "We will decide where we'll compete, as both competitions offer a vary degree of competition."

American, which sent five student-athletes to the NCAA Championships a year ago, opens on Saturday, Oct. 20 with the ranking matches event. The event, which helps determine early season placing on the depth chart, is part of All-American Weekend at AU.

The Eagles' first home dual is on Saturday, Jan. 12, 2019 against Columbia and is part of a back-to-back home weekend that finishes with Hofstra on Sunday afternoon. Lehigh, which won the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association title last year, comes to Bender Arena on Saturday, Jan. 19.

AU closes the regular season with home duals against George Mason (Feb. 15) and Old Dominion (Senior Night, Feb. 22) before heading to postseason action.

The 2019 EIWA Championships are March 9 and 10 at Binghamton, with the NCAA Championships in Pittsburgh on March 21 through 23.